Sunday, May 19, 2019

What is the end rhyme of the poem "Annabel Lee" and what does it tell us about the poem?

The last
stanza of the poem bytitled "" reads,

For the
moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And
the stars never rise but I see the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;


This is very much a sample of the Romantic and Gothic aspects of
the poem. First, the exaltation of nature is typical of , and takes center stage in most
realistic, romantic and Gothic literature. The moon and the stars are not just satellites of
earth; they are witnesses of the pain and suffering that both the narrator and Annabel Lee
herself have had to experience through their respective existences.

Annabel
Lee, who is tragically dead too young, had all the factors that would have made her a happy
woman: beauty, youth, ample time. It is death that had to strike like a thief in the night the
same way that it had done with all of the women Poe loved the most in his life.


These verses are stating that life will never be the same. The moon will never beam, at
least not for the narrator. The stars will not rise, either. All will remain in total darkness.
Why would there be any more brilliance than those of the eyes of the young dead woman, who will
never open them again?  It is all allegorical also to the depression and grief that the narrator
expresses throughout.

And so, all the night-tide, I lie
down by the side
Of my darlingmy darlingmy life and my bride


Changing the rhyming meter and form in contrast to the rest of the
poem, here Poe, once again, makes mention of an element of nature, the night-tide, which he uses
as a base for support; a place where he can lie on and express his sorrows. He wants to be near
his love, so he goes lies next to her. He wants to emphasize that this is not an ordinary
childhood crush. She was everything to him, and he wants to make a point of it.  


In her sepulchre there by the sea,

       In her
tomb by the side of the sea

Here Poe offers a repetition
within the anapest that is allusive to the ocean, once again, bringing a tone of nostalgia,
coldness, an inevitability to the whole situation. Theelicited by the mention of the sea entails
that, under water, mysterious things lurk. Her sepulcher "there by the sea" shows that
not only is she buried, but she is also in the middle of the elements, which are so
unpredictable.

Yet, the reassurance that she is "by the sea" can
also signify that Poe knows exactly where to go and where to find her. He has pinpointed that
spot "by the side of the sea" and has made it their spot. This is indicative of his
desire to preserve her memory forever.

href="https://www.owleyes.org/text/annabel-lee/read/annabel-lee">https://www.owleyes.org/text/annabel-lee/read/annabel-lee

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